Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

पादयोः पांसुकणिका यावत्तिष्ठंति भूतले । तावद्वर्षसहस्राणि जागरी वसते दिवि

Transliteration

pādayoḥ pāṃsukaṇikā yāvattiṣṭhaṃti bhūtale | tāvadvarṣasahasrāṇi jāgarī vasate divi

Translation

ما دامت ذرّات الغبار من القدمين باقيةً على وجه الأرض، فبقدر ذلك من آلاف السنين يقيم الساهر في السماء.

Word by Word

• पादयोः: of the feet
• पादयोः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी/सप्तमी, द्विवचन — Genitive/Locative dual; here genitive ‘of (his) feet’

• पांसुकणिका: a speck/grain of dust
• पांसुकणिका: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पांसु + कणिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular; subject

• यावत्: as long as
• यावत्: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाण/अवधि-बोधक अव्यय (correlative: as long as/so long)

• तिष्ठन्ति: remain
• तिष्ठन्ति: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन — they stand/remain

• भूतले: on the ground/earth
• भूतले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूतल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), एकवचन — Locative singular

• तावत्: so long
• तावत्: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाण/अवधि-बोधक अव्यय (correlative: so long/that long)

• वर्षसहस्राणि: (for) thousands of years
• वर्षसहस्राणि: Kala-adhikarana (Time/काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (काल-अत्यन्त-संयोगे), बहुवचन — Accusative plural used adverbially ‘for thousands of years’

• जागरी: the vigil-keeper
• जागरी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जागरिन्/जागरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular; ‘one who keeps vigil’

• वसते: dwells
• वसते: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वस् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद — dwells

• दिवि: in heaven
• दिवि: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्/द्यौ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), एकवचन — Locative singular

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Dvārakā Māhātmya narrative style within Skanda Purāṇa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Viṣṇu/Kṛṣṇa-jāgara (Dvārakā)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee leaving the vigil at dawn; tiny dust motes rise from the feet and sparkle like stars, while above, a celestial path opens to svarga where the devotee is welcomed for ‘thousands of years’ measured by those dust particles.

Characters & Entities

• Svarga (heaven)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa emphasizes the vast, enduring merit of a devotional vigil through a vivid time-measure metaphor.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvārakā’s Vaiṣṇava observance context in the Dvārakā Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Keeping the night-vigil (jāgaraṇa), whose merit is said to yield long heavenly residence.